Chapter Text
"PARK JONGSEONG WAKE YOUR ASS UP WE ARE GOING TO BE LATE" Riki shouted, his footsteps loud enough for the whole neighborhood to hear as he was nearing Jay's room. As soon as he walked in he saw a bundled up Jay under the blankets with a mop of messy hair peeking through.
Riki always liked Jay's room. The posters on the wall, the guitars in every corner and the neatness of his room summed up his personality. But he couldn't care less right now as he was throwing anything he could find at Jay to wake him up.
"5 more minutes" Jay groaned and hid his face in a fluffy pillow next to him, ignoring his best friend throwing socks at him.
"No we don't have time. We have to pick up Jungwon and Sunoo before we go to school" He whined as he tried to separate Jay and his bed finding it really hard to move an 1.8m tall man. After a few minutes of back and forth banter Jay finally decided to go get ready.
He stood over the sink, toothbrush hanging out of his mouth as he glared at his own reflection. His hair was sticking out in five directions and he looked like he hadn't slept in a year considering he was up all night playing videogames.
After getting out of the bathroom and staring at his closet for way too long, he settled on black baggy pants and an oversized shirt. It was easy, comfortable, safe. Add a couple of rings and a chain and maybe no one would notice the dark circles under his eyes.
While fixing his hair, Riki grabbed Jay by the wrist.
"Let's go already"
Jay barely had time to snatch his backpack before being dragged out of the house. "Bye, Mom! Dad!" he yelled over his shoulder.
"Walk faster" Jay complained once they were halfway down the street. "I need to find a hallway crush and organize my locker"
Riki shot him a look. "A few minutes ago you didn't even want to get out of bed. You don't get to talk"
They spotted Jungwon waving from his porch, Sunoo beside him, both looking way too awake for 8 a.m.
"You have too much energy this early Wonnie" Jay groaned, making Jungwon pout.
The four of them had lived on the same street since they were little, so hanging out together was second nature, even if Riki was a year younger. Over the years, their bond only grew stronger.
"Let's go guys. We'll be late" Riki said, slinging an arm around Sunoo's shoulders.
The walk to school was peaceful, the quiet morning broken only by Riki and Sunoo shoving each other playfully.
When they finally reached the school gates, the buzz of voices and the clatter of lockers filled the air. They shared a quick look before splitting off to find their own lockers.
Jay was searching for his locker when he suddenly bumped into someone, almost losing his balance but catching himself at the last second.
"I'm sorry" he said quickly, bowing before looking up and freezing.
The guy standing in front of him looked like he'd walked straight out of trouble: tall, built, with messy dark brown hair and sharp brown eyes that seemed to scan right through him. For a moment, Jay forgot how to breathe.
"Next time watch where you're going, shrimp" the guy said, voice low and annoyed, before brushing past him.
Jay blinked, still processing what just happened. Shrimp? Seriously?
He frowned, trying to shake the weird feeling crawling up his chest, part irritation, part... something else. Whatever. Jerk.
The hallway buzzed with noise again as he found his locker and shoved his things inside. He checked his schedule: math, first period.
The bell rang, echoing down the halls. Jay grabbed his books and rushed to class, sliding into the seat by the window. He was still thinking about the brown-haired guy when a voice pulled him back.
"Jay!"
Jungwon waved from the door, grinning. Relief washed over him, at least he wasn't alone. They chatted quietly until the teacher came in and introduced herself, but Jay's mind kept wandering for a moment, back to that glare in the hallway.
“Hi, I’m Cho Miyeon and I’ll be your math teacher this year. Since it’s the first day I’ll let you have a free period. Don’t make much noise and don’t cause trouble” Mrs. Cho said before sitting at her desk, already scrolling through her phone.
The class immediately came alive. Chairs scraped, laughter filled the room and within seconds, half the students were already heading outside.
“Come on” Jungwon said, tugging Jay’s sleeve. Jay nodded and followed, grateful for some air after the chaotic morning.
They found a bench in the school garden, the sunlight warm and the breeze light. Everything looked new, organized, calm, too good to be true.
Jay leaned back. “In our old school we barely had benches that weren’t broken” he muttered half to himself. “Why do they have all this?”
“Maybe rich people donate or something” Jungwon said with a shrug before turning to him with a teasing grin. “So… do you know who that guy was? The one you bumped into?”
Jay groaned. “No. And I don’t wanna know. He was rude as hell”
“At least was he handsome? Like an enemies-to-lovers trope?”
Jay shot him a glare. “You’re delusional”
Jungwon only giggled. “You didn’t deny it though”
“I didn’t really pay attention” Jay muttered, then paused. “Though I guess he did look… tall. And angry. Not exactly my type...”
“We’ll see” Jungwon sing-songed.
“Yeah sure. Anyway, I’m going to the bathroom” Jay said, standing up and dusting off his pants. “Don’t do anything dumb while I’m gone”
“You’re the one who finds trouble” Jungwon called after him but Jay was already walking away, rolling his eyes.
Jay wandered back into the building, scanning the hallways for a bathroom sign. After a few minutes of walking in circles, he sighed. “Okay, maybe I’m lost” he muttered under his breath, turning to head back outside.
“Hey, short stack”
Jay froze. That voice was way too familiar.
He turned and saw the same guy from earlier — brown hair, cocky smirk, hands in his pockets like he was pretending to be cool.
“You again?” Jay said, already annoyed.
“You look lost” the guy said, stepping closer.
“Yeah I’m trying to find the bathroom. You gonna help or just stand there?”
“Depends... What do I get for it?” Heeseung leaned in slightly, clearly enjoying how much he was irritating him.
Jay huffed. “How about the satisfaction of not being useless?”
Heeseung laughed, a short, low sound that made Jay get goosebumps for reasons he refused to admit.
“I’m Lee Heeseung” he said finally, still smirking.
“Good for you” Jay shot back. “Now move if you're not going to help”
When Heeseung didn’t, Jay shoved past him with more force than necessary. “Seriously, what’s your deal?” he muttered, half to himself.
“You make it too easy to mess with you” Heeseung said, voice light but his gaze sharp.
Jay opened his mouth to reply, but a teacher appeared at the end of the hall. Heeseung backed off immediately, hands raised like he was innocent.
Jay exhaled, rolling his eyes. Of course he leaves when someone shows up.
“What an asshole” he grumbled and walked off, his heart annoyingly fast for no reason he wanted to think about.
When Jay went back outside, he saw Jungwon talking with some guy. He was tall with messy brown hair and an easy smile. Jungwon was nodding at whatever he was saying, cheeks pink like he’d just run a marathon.
Jay grinned to himself. Oh he’s done for.
Deciding to leave them alone before Jungwon noticed him spying, Jay shoved his hands in his pockets and wandered off. The garden felt quieter now, the kind of calm that makes you think too much.
He walked around for a bit until the bell rang. Most of his classes went pretty well. His classmates were friendly and luckily, he had some with his friends too. The only downside was Heeseung being in three classes with him and he kept giving him looks whenever their eyes met.
When lunch came, Jay skipped it and went to the library instead, since his friends were nowhere to be found.
When the final bell rang, he found his friends waiting outside. Jungwon was all smiles, Sunoo was teasing him about something and Riki looked like he’d rather be anywhere else. Apparently, Jungwon’s “new friend” was named Jake, and Sunoo wouldn’t shut up about how cute the two of them looked together.
Jay laughed it off, but his mind drifted when Riki mentioned Heeseung.
“He’s that senior who got held back” Riki said. “Kinda popular, kinda scary. He messes with people but not in a serious way”
“Yeah, totally harmless” Jay muttered rolling his eyes.
When Jay got home the house was quiet. His parents were still at work as usual. He didn’t love it, but he understood they worked hard and when they were around they made sure to make it count.
He kicked off his shoes, threw his bag on the couch and crashed on his bed for what was supposed to be a quick nap. When he woke up, it was 7 p.m. He ordered Chinese food, ate while scrolling through his phone, then spent the rest of the evening doing homework and playing games.
By the time he texted his parents goodnight, his eyelids were already heavy so he drifted off to sleep.